Live: Stampede kills 14 during Bihar's Chhath festival

The Chhath festival in Bihar was struck by tragedy after a stampede killed an estimated 14 people. The are initial figures and exact details are still emerging.

The stampede, in a ghat in the Adalat Ganj area, occurred after a bridge collapsed due to heavy traffic. Several women and children are feared dead.

6.05 pm:

Ponty Chadha's death could jolt his business in UP

Barely two days after his gruesome death in a shootout in Delhi, billionaire Ponty Chadha's liquor and other businesses in Uttar Pradesh could be the first casualty of the incident, government officials said Monday.

While admitting that it was a bit "early" to speculate about such an eventuality, officials said that Ponty's death could mean bad news for his Wave Group.

"Other than the money that he so craftily used to his advantage, his personal charm and well−oiled network" furthered his business empire in the state, recalled a bureaucrat, pointing to the state's excise policy that was allegedly tilted in his favour.

He said all liquor sales in the 70 districts were routed through his company or other subsidiaries during the Mayawati government's regime. Chadha controlled nearly 60 percent of the liquor business in Uttar Pradesh.

The police felt a FB comment is completely harmless and the attack wasn't justified.They also refused to arrest the girl who posted the status & the one who 'liked' it.

No, that's not what happened?It was the exact opposite?Oh ok."

- Cyrus Daruwala

3.17 pm:

5 kg tumour removed from man's chest

A team of doctors has removed a tumour weighting 5 kg from the chest of a man at SMS government hospital here.

"The patient Ramkishan (45) was facing problems in normal breathing and was suffering from acute pain for the last one year. He was detected with the tumour in the right of his chest touching the spinal cord, food pipe and other organs," according to Dr Sanjeev Devgarh, surgeon of CT surgery department, SMS hospital.

"After examining the case, the operation was conducted which continued for around six hours. In the operation, a tumour weighting 5 kg was successfully removed from the patient's body," he said, adding, that the patient is now doing well in the hospital.

The Supreme Court pulls up Centre for being "casual" in handling 2G case before it. SC asks government to explain why 2G spectrum licenses which were cancelled by it, were not put on recent auction.

2.52 pm:

Uddhav collects father's ashes

Shiv Sena executive president Uddhav Thackeray Monday collected the ashes of his father and Sena patriarch Bal Thackeray in two urns, a day after his mortal remains were consigned to flames at Shivaji Park here.

Uddhav visited Shivaji Park, which saw the public cremation of the 86−year−old party founder Sunday in the presence of over two million supporters, and collected the ashes of his father.

In an another incident of honour killing in Bihar, a man and his two minor children were murdered and his wife critically injured for marrying against her family's wishes, police said Monday.

Dinaru Bind, 28 was shot dead while his three−year−old daughter and seven−month−old son's throats were slit late Sunday night at Kearha village in Mohania in Kaimur district, about 150 km from here.Read more

12.08 pm:

The BJP has welcomed Mamata Banerjee's plan to bring a no confidence motion against the UPA government in the upcoming winter session of the parliament. ' We will coordinate with Mamata,' the party said

11.50 am:

Local SP leader shot dead

A local SP leader was shot dead by unidentified assailants in Sahatwar area, police said today.

Kalawato Devi, who was also a former village head, was shot dead in Kusra village late last night, Superintendent of Police Onkar Singh said.

He said prima facie it seemed to be a case of rivalry.

Basic Education Minister Ram Govind Chaudhary, who hails from the district, has cancelled his visit to Lucknow, and rushed to the spot.

11.10 am:

China's Xi warns party of corruption scourge

China's incoming president, Xi Jinping, has warned Communist Party officials about the need to fight corruption or risk ruining the country.

The official Xinhua News Agency reported details Monday of a speech Xi gave over the weekend to the new 25-member Politburo in which he said the party must be vigilant against corruption. Xi said that in recent years, countries where corruption prompted major public anger have experienced social unrest and regime collapse.

Xi said: "The large number of facts tells us that if the problem of corruption becomes increasingly severe, it will lead to the ruin of the party and the country!"

Party leaders have often reiterated that corruption is a serious threat to their rule.

10. 40 am:

Sunita Williams back on Earth after 4 months in space

Record-setting Indian-American Sunita Williams along with two fellow astronauts safely returned to Earth today from the International Space Station, touching down on the steppes of central Kazakhstan, after spending four months in orbit.

It was a perfect landing for Williams and two astronauts, Flight Engineers Yuri Malenchenko and Aki Hoshide, as they touched down in the dark, chilly expanses of central Kazakhstan on board a Russian Soyuz capsule.

The three astronauts landed at 0726 IST in the town of Arkalyk.

10.10 am:

Rupee up 17 paise against dollar in early trade

The rupee rose by 19 paise to Rs 54.99 against the US dollar in early trade today at the Interbank Foreign Exchange on the selling of American currency by exporters and banks.

Besides, a higher opening in the domestic equity market and strengthening of euro against the dollar overseas supported the rupee, dealers said.

Meanwhile, the BSE benchmark index Sensex rose by 56.22 points, or 0.30 per cent, to 18,365.59.

The rupee had lost 46 paise to close at two-month low of 55.16 against the dollar in the previous session on Friday on the back of heavy demand for the American currency from importers and sustained weakness in local equities.

9.10 am:

Rajinikanth`s condolence message to Balasaheb

Tamil superstar Rajinikanth is a great fan of the late Shiva Sena supremo Balasaheb Thackeray.

Rajinikanth was supposed to go to Mumbai during the weekend to pay a courtesy visit to the ailing leader.

However, Balasaheb passed away on Saturday at the age of 86 due to a sudden cardiac arrest and liver ailments. Superstar Rajinikanth has sent his condolence message to the Shiv Sena founder.

Rajinikanth in his condolence message said, "Sri Balasaheb Thackeray was a great leader and a father figure to many, including me. This is a great loss to all. My heartfelt condolences to all his

family members, and followers all over the world. I pray for his soul to rest in peace at the feet of the lord."

8.33 am:

A major fire has broken out at the Himalaya House, New Delhi. About 22 fire tenders have been rushed to the spot. The fire broke out around 6.20 am. Reports indicate that there has been no loss of life due to the fire.

​8.10 am:

Three astronauts have touched down in the dark, chilly expanses of central Kazakhstan onboard a Soyuz capsule after a 125-day stay at the International Space Station.

NASA's Sunita Williams, Russian astronaut Yury Malenchenko and Aki Hoshide of Japan's JAXA space agency landed at 07:56 a.m. Monday local time (0156 GMT) northeast of the town of Arkalyk.

Helicopters rushed search-and-recovery crew to assist the crew, whose capsule parachuted down some 35 kilometers from the planned touchdown site due to a minimal delay in procedures.

Another three astronauts remain onboard the space station and are to be joined by an incoming trio late next month.

The Soyuz remains the only means for international astronauts to reach the orbiting laboratory since the decommissioning of the U.S. shuttle fleet in 2011.